Experience the Beauty of the Badlands and Black Hills
A trip through the Black Hills during the winter time is simply an amazing adventure.
This area of South Dakota is a real oasis in a sea of prairie land, where you can find the temps sometimes over 15 degrees higher than the surrounding area. While the higher elevations receive over 200 inches of snow every year, the Black Hills receive much less.
Making this region ideal for skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling on one of the top snowmobile trail systems in the country.
What you will love best about the Badlands and Black Hills area is the year-round access to many popular attractions, most notably the four presidential faces carved into the side of Mount Rushmore.
Other must dos include checking out the wildlife of Custer State Park, exploring the caverns of Wind Cave, and visiting Devils Tower at sunset.
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Events and Festivals in the Badlands & Black Hills
With so many year-round events in the Badlands region, it can be hard to keep up. From sporting events and concerts to monument specials and food festivals – whatever is calling your name, you will find it here. The most popular event in the state is the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Over 500,000 riders, concert fanatics, and street-food enjoyers flock to this rally every year. Sturgis is located, only minutes from Mount Rushmore, Devils Tower, Crazy Horse, Custer State Park, and some of the most scenic riding in the country.
Museums in the Badlands & Black Hills
Throughout the Badlands and Black Hills region you will find a wide variety of Native American history exhibits and hands-on museums like The Journey Museum & Learning Center. Located in downtown Rapid City, the Dahl Arts Center, features a variety of cultural exhibits, fine arts, classes, and seminars. Visit the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology campus and you can tour the APEX Gallery. Here you can explore the ancient history of the area at one of the top fossil and mineral museums in the United States.
Outdoor Adventures in the Badlands & Black Hills
You don’t have to look far to find fun things to do outdoors while in the Badlands and Black Hills, South Dakota. Cover over 10,000 square miles of vast prairie land, grassland, rugged mountains, and Badlands landscape, this region of western South Dakota is a sportsman’s paradise. From biking and hiking the miles of trails, climbing up the granite rock of the Black Hills to hitting the links or kayaking the rapids, there's something for everyone.
Historic Sites in the Badlands & Black Hills
You will discover a variety of historic sites and interesting relics from another time while in the Black Hills. Listed on National Register of Historic Places, take a journey into the visual memories of homestead days at an original pioneer dirt home at Prairie Homestead Historic Site. Take the time to stop by a couple of the former boom towns, now ghost towns, of the Black Hills, like Galena and Spokane.
Discover Best Western Hotels in South Dakota
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